Bradshaw shook his head. “I don’t know. A lot of speculation. But I agree with one thing. Whatever Jonathan was trying to do, he ran up against someone who was smarter and better prepared, and it cost him his life.”

“Not someone,” Ethel corrected. “Some team. Cory, I’m afraid you’ve got your work cut out for you.”

That assessment brought the meeting to a close. When the house was quiet, and everyone was settled for the night, Ethel softly tread up the front stairs and lightly knocked on Jesse’s door.

“Come in.”

Ethel entered and found Jesse sitting at his desk, a laptop open in front of him.

She closed the door behind her. “How are you feeling?”

“My head still aches but not as bad.”

“Do you think you could cut classes again tomorrow?”

“I hope to be better by then.”

“Good. Because I want you to come with me. Bring your laptop and an external drive if you have one.”

“Where are we going?”

“Back to Richmond. I want to test your theory about Jonathan having a backup drive, and I want to get there before Cory or Frank.”

“So, we won’t tell the others?”

“No.” She turned to go.

“Are you good to drive to Richmond?” he asked. “I can help.”

Ethel gave him a wry smile. “Who said anything about driving to Richmond? We’re going by private plane.”

“You’ve booked a pilot?”

“Jesse, I am the pilot.”

Chapter 17

“Jesse. Jesse.”

Jesse heard his name as a whisper, at first hollow and distant, and then closer with a rush of breath flowing across his ear. He felt a hand gently shake his arm, and he opened his eyes to find Ethel leaning over his bed.

“What time is it?” His voice was thick with sleep.

“Five thirty. Can you be ready to leave by six? I want to be gone by the time the others wake up.”

He rubbed his eyes and saw that she was already dressed in a gray pantsuit.

She stepped back from the bed. “You can skip shaving and wash up in the downstairs bathroom. Bring your laptop and external drive.”

At ten till six, Ethel quietly locked the back door behind them. Jesse paused to look at the new pane of glass that the twenty-four-hour service had installed late the previous afternoon. He hoped Ethel was correct in that now there was no reason for the intruder to return.

Ethel’s Infiniti was parked in front of her single car garage. Normally, it would have been inside. Jesse suspected she’d purposely avoided the sound the power door opener would have made. He expected to hear the chirp of her keyless remote, but even that noise had been anticipated. The car was already unlocked. Ethel clearly didn’t want to have to explain to anyone what actions she was taking.